


Sunflowers, Misunderstandings, and the Love that Came from Them

by too_many_obssesions



Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, Generic American High School Au, Light Angst, M/M, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:20:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26154859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/too_many_obssesions/pseuds/too_many_obssesions
Summary: Tenma Sumeragi only wants two things in life right now. To get the lead in the upcoming play, and to get the courage to ask Banri to Homecoming. Unfortunately for him, one of those things is a lot easier than the other.
Relationships: Settsu Banri/Sumeragi Tenma
Comments: 11
Kudos: 32





	Sunflowers, Misunderstandings, and the Love that Came from Them

**Author's Note:**

> Written as a gift for @lumi_aya on Twitter. Just in case you didn’t read the tags, this is blatantly based off American high school and completely inaccurate to canon. If you’re ok with that please enjoy.
> 
> There is now art!  
> https://twitter.com/lumi_aya/status/1299386347715788804?s=21

Tenma sighed as he looked at the poster in front of him. Homecoming. It wasn’t like he hated the dance or anything, he’d had fun the two years before, but this year would be his last chance to go with Banri before the older boy moved away for college. He hadn’t gone in his freshman year, instead he’d stayed at home and practiced lines. Sophomore year he’d chickened out before he could ask and ended up going with Sakuya, Kumon, and Tsuzuru instead. Thankfully he had met up with Banri at the actual dance and was able to hang out with him then, but it wasn’t the same as if they had gone together.

“What are you doing just sitting there?” Tenma turned around to see the object of his affection standing behind him. He did his best not to focus on the hand that the other had suddenly clasped on his shoulder, or on how the other leaned in so close he could feel his breath on his neck. That was just Banri being Banri. He got into everyone’s space.

“Ah, I guess I just spaced out.”

“Well space back in. Class starts in a minute.”

“Wait seriously?! My next period’s on the other side of the school!”

“Better start running then.” Banri clapped the other boy’s shoulder before turning and walking away, probably to the library to hide while he skipped class. Tenma forced himself not to focus on the lingering warmth where the other had touched him. It was only after he got scolded by the teacher that he realized he’d forgotten to ask the other boy about homecoming. 

  
  


Tenma didn’t see Banri again until lunch later that day. Out of their friend group, only the two of them and Sakuya had B lunch so the three would always meet up in the theater room. Technically, Banri wasn’t allowed in there because he wasn’t actually a part of theater, but Ms. Tachibana liked him so he just kept coming.

“Yo.”

“Banri! You’re late.”

“Sorry, Mr. Tsukioka was bitching at me. He keeps getting on my ass about doing extracurriculars.”

“So, the usual then?”

“Yeah, God I don’t even know why I still go to that class.”

“Aw, Banri, don’t be like that. He’s just worried about your future.”

“Yeah well, I wish he'd worry by not involving me tutoring some randos. Ah, that reminds me, Taichi said y'all have a test this Friday? Uh... Precalc, right? Wanna come over for help?"

“Can we do it tomorrow, we’ve got auditions today?” It almost physically hurt Tenma to turn down a night alone with his crush, but if he was going to become the world’s greatest actor he had to get all the practice in that he could.

“Can’t. Already got plans with Hyodo. Guess we’re just gonna have to do it during lunch.”

“Yeah…”

Juza. It was always fucking Juza. Tenma felt bad for his thoughts about his friend but it was hard not to resent the person your crush spent ninety percent of their time talking about. On top of that, Tenma wasn’t even all that close to Juza. He mostly knew him as Kumon’s older brother and Banri’s weird hate crush. Sure the older boy seemed nice enough, and the interactions they’d had had been pleasant, but that wouldn’t stop him from being petty.

“What do you think, Tenma?”

“Huh?”

“Told you he wasn’t paying attention, Sakuya. What d'ya say if I audition for the play? The script's only like two and a half pages, right? Can probably memorize that before four. Three if I put my head into it."

“Yeah that’s true. Usually I hate it when people walk into auditions unprepared, but if anyone can memorize the whole script in less than a day, it’s you. And you’d make a pretty good co-lead.”

“Oh and I’m guessing Mr. Richie Rich here thinks he’ll be the main lead?”

“Naturally, especially since Sakuya won’t be auditioning this time.”

“… Guess it won’t be too shitty acting alongside ya though.”

“You gotta pass the audition first, asshole.”

“I could say the same to you too, dumbass.”

There couldn’t ever be anything better than this. Sitting with two of his closest friends, laughing with his crush. He couldn’t ruin this, so he shoved down his feelings, and any thoughts of homecoming with them.

  
  


This year’s fall play was special because it’d been the last one written by their scriptwriter Tsuzuru before he left for college. After this one, writing would be taken over by some kid named Madoka. Supposedly, the now college student had slammed the script onto Izumi’s desk on his last day of school before running off, never to be seen again. Tenma could honestly understand why. While most of their plays had some kind of gay subtext going on, Tenma was pretty sure that if the two leads were to start making out, no one would bat an eye.

More worrying than Tsuzuru’s deeply repressed feelings though, was the fact that due to the nature of the play, auditions would be held in random pairs. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem, Tenma had mastered the art of faking chemistry, but of all the people he could be paired with, it was Banri. Sometimes Tenma felt as if the universe was conspiring against him. 

“You ready for this?” No. Never. Not even in a million years. 

“I should be the one asking you that.”

Thankfully, the audition went off without a hitch. Sure, Tenma blushed when Banri put his hand on his cheek despite knowing it was a part of the script. And maybe he stuttered a couple of times when looking into Banri’s eyes for too long, but luckily his character was pretty shy soge could pass it off as character building. The cast wouldn’t be announced till next week, but after watching all the auditions, Tenma was sure he’d get the part. After everyone was finished with their auditions, Tenma sought out Banri since the blonde had promised to take him home. He noticed the delinquent had wandered off at some point during and reception was so bad in school that calling him would be useless.

Luckily, it didn't take him long to find him. Unluckily, his search had led him to find Banri pinning Juza to the wall behind the school. This wasn’t exactly an unusual sight, really. It's common knowledge that Banri and Juza fought all the time. But their lips were so close, and it was obviously meant to be a secret. If those two weren’t hiding something, why would they be back here? There was only one answer, and Tenma hated it.

Tenma ended up calling his chauffeur to pick him up. He wasn’t sure he could take being in the same car as Banri right now. At first he tried to act as if everything were normal, but his heart squeezed whenever he saw him so he started avoiding him. He went straight to class when he got to school in the morning, he avoided the theater classroom during lunch, instead getting tutoring from some random classmate for the precalc test. He went home directly after school without saying goodbye to anyone. It was kinda lonely, but it was better than his heart breaking every time he saw him. 

  
  


That Sunday, Tenma was sitting in his room with Kumon, Muku, and Yuki while Misumi and Kazunari Skyped them on his laptop. It was their monthly get together to make sure they stayed “totes connected” while the two were at college. Apparently, he went as far as to kick their other roommate out when they called. He said the other guy didn’t mind as long as they had a pot of coffee ready for when he got back. Tenma thought it was unnecessary considering one of the two was calling almost everyday, but he couldn’t deny that it was fun. But even having fun with his friends didn’t erase the heavy feeling in his heart. 

“Alright Hack, I’ll bite, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Tenma. Lying isn’t nice. Tell the truth and I’ll send you a triangle.”

“I don’t want that! … But if you’re gonna keep bothering me I guess I have no choice.” Tenma took a deep breath and steeled himself. “I saw… Juza and Banri behind the school. ‘M pretty sure they're together.”

Tenma looked down after he said that, he didn’t want to see the looks of pity on his friends' faces, they’d been listening to him pine for years now after all. 

“There’s now way my brother’s dating that one length!”

“That sucks. But look at it this way, now we don’t have to worry about your guy’s breakup destroying the friend group.”

“Aw, poor Tenma, are you sure you don’t want me to send you a triangle?”

Who was he kidding, his friends were all assholes.

“Seriously though TenTen, it’s ok to be sad about it, but don’t let it consume you! You’ll move on and find someone else.”

“Thanks, Kazunari.”

“No problem! And if that doesn’t work, it shouldn’t be _too_ hard to break them up, right?”

“Yeah! There’s no way one length is good enough for my big brother!”

“But you’re fine letting the Hack date him?”

“Of course!”

He sighed. His friends really were too much sometimes. But he wasn’t thinking of Banri anymore. And Kazunari was right about moving on, though he was a little worried over the fact that they were so willing to break up their friends’ relationship. He’d have to stop them before they got too far into it. 

While the group was debating the ethics of kidnapping Juza and sending him an all expense paid trip someone came knocking on the door. At first Kumon was going to get it, but for some reason, Muku insisted that it had to be Tenma. It was the first time he’d talked since Banri had been brought up so Tenma figured it must be important. Tenma opened the door to find Banri outside with a bouquet of flowers.

“Shit, this isn’t the way I wanted to do this, it’s fucking embarrassing but Muku insisted I had to do it now so, wanna, dunno, go to homecoming or something?”

“What?”

“You’re really gonna make me fucking say it again. Look so you wanna go to homecoming with me?”

“No, I heard you, but… what about Juza, aren’t you dating him?”

“What the fuck? No! Jesus Christ are you fucking stupid? I wouldn’t date that motherfucker if we were the last men on earth!”

“But the secret meet ups?”

“That… Hyodo was acting as an in between for me and Muku. They’ve been helping me plan all this.” So that was why Muku had been so quiet that night.

“Well?”

“Yes, my answer is yes. … But if we’re going together I’m coordinating our outfits, I’d don’t want to end up in a leopard print tuxedo.”

“Yeah well if I left it to you we’d end up wearing juits or some shit like that.”

“Idiot, I only wear juits to semi-formal events.”

“...Damn not even a minute in and I’m already starting to regret asking you out.”

“Yeah well it’s too late now, you’re stuck with me.”

“Heh, guess I am.”

  
  



End file.
